SANYA /China/, December 6. /TASS/. Participants of the 6th Hainan International Film Festival (HIFF) began the main part of the annual event on Friday, which opened with a red carpet and a grand ceremony. Chinese director Zhang Yimou and his French counterparts Sophie Marceau, Luc Besson and Olivier Megaton were among the star attendees at the HIFF opening ceremony in the resort city of Sanya on the small island of Phoenix.
Other well-known figures of contemporary world cinema who appeared at the Sanya festival included Italian cinematographer Paolo Carnera, directors Laura Citarella (Argentina), Li Ruijun (China) and Margherita Giusti (Italy), Chinese screenwriter Bao Jingjing, and actors from all over China.
Seven full-length feature films, all made in 2024, are competing for the festival's Golden Coconut Award in eight categories. The films include "She Sat There Like All Ordinary Ones" (Kai Shi De Qiang) and "My Friend An Delie" (Wo De Peng You An De Lie) by Chinese directors Youjia Qu and Dong Zi Jian, and the American film "Invention" by Courtney Stephens, "Pavane For An Infant" by Malaysian director Chong Keat Aung, his Georgian counterpart Tato Kotetishvili's "Holy Electricity", "78 Days" by Serbian director Emilija Gašić and "A Dark Light" by Chilean director Alberto Hayden.
There are also 6 documentaries and 10 short films (including Russia's "Fence" by director Lev Evlampiev and "Murmur of August" by Daur Ladaria) competing for HIFF awards.
Prospects for the development of Hainan's film industry
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the festival, Hainan Governor Liu Xiaoming said that China's southernmost province is "a natural studio for shooting films of all genres at any time". He invited Chinese and foreign filmmakers to showcase their masterpieces, exchange experiences, promote cooperation and enjoy the opportunities of Hainan Free Trade Port together.
According to Sophie Marceau, Hainan is "an ideal place to hold a festival open to the whole world". She recalled that this year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the People's Republic of China and France. "And I would like to say: long live friendship, long live Hainan, long live cinema!" she added.
The Hainan festival kicked off with screenings on December 4 and will run through December 10. Organizers received more than 4,300 film submissions from 117 countries and regions. The event, whose main opening ceremony will be held on December 6, is organized under the theme "From Oceans, With Visions".
HIFF is recognized as one of the four major film festivals in the People's Republic of China and will be held for the first time in December 2018. It has hosted world-renowned actors and directors such as Jackie Chan, Nicolas Cage, Johnny Depp and Nuri Bilge Ceylan. In 2021, the event was cancelled due to the pandemic. The fifth Hainan Film Festival was held from December 16 to 22, 2023.